The Forgotten Empire: The Battle For Earth: Book three

by Raymond L. Weil

  -

  Layla and Derrick were at the top of one of the newly refurbished sky towers. They stood on a large balcony, overlooking the capital.

  “It’s so beautiful up here,” said Layla. She looked down at all the city lights and the lights from the aircars that zoomed about. The capital stretched out for kilometers in all directions.

  “It is something to see,” admitted Derrick. A gentle breeze blew, and the sky was clear. Looking up, he saw thousands of stars glittering in the night sky. “I can see why people enjoy these sky towers so much.”

  Layla smiled. “Many Imperial offices are in the towers. It’s where the work of the Empire was done. Sometimes it frightens me thinking about everything to be decided.”

  Derrick took Layla into his arms and kissed her. “You and Krista will get it all figured out. The two of you were trained for this. Just follow your instincts, and the two of you will do fine.”

  Layla stayed in Derrick’s arms, leaning her head against his shoulder. “I know. It’s one of the reasons Krista and Chancellor Stein are touring the core worlds. I need a list of possible candidates to fill hundreds of Imperial positions.”

  “Let’s not worry about that for now,” replied Derrick. “Let’s just watch the stars and the lights of the city. The future will take care of itself.” Derrick had all the confidence in the world in the two Princesses. They had an Empire to rebuild, and Derrick knew that, someday, they would do just that.

  Chapter Nine

  Pallas-based Fleet Admiral Reynolds was meeting in person with three of his six admirals in the Human Empire. Rear Admiral Leeson had arrived with Second Fleet the day before.

  “We expect the Confederation attack to occur in three to six weeks and to hit our most likely targets—Earth, the Moon, Mars, Pallas, Ganymede, and Titan,” Reynolds informed the gathered admirals. The other admirals had been advised via hyperlight transmission. “Rear Admiral Collison, your fleet will continue to protect Earth. Rear Admiral Mendoza, your fleet will be responsible for Mars, and that leaves Second Fleet.” Reynolds paused and looked at Rear Admiral Leeson. “We’ll leave Second Fleet unassigned. We’ll send you wherever we need you the most. That could be anywhere in the Solar System—even to Ganymede but we probably can’t send you out as far as Titan. We’ll station Second Fleet near the Moon and wait to see where its needed.”

  Rear Admiral Leeson nodded. “In the meantime, what precautions are we taking to protect Earth and the other colonies in the system?”

  We’re increasing the strength of all the defensive grids on those worlds deemed targets, especially on Jupiter’s moon Ganymede, both in orbit and on the moon itself, as well as Saturn’s moon Titan. We’re also trying to get the smaller colonies to evacuate. We won’t have the resources to defend them all.”

  Rear Admiral Leeson looked concerned. “So what’s the status on sending further military materials and ships to other parts of the Empire?”

  “Not good. Until we deal with this enemy fleet the Confederation has sent, all military convoys are on hold. That goes for ships too. There’s been some pressure to return Third Fleet from the core worlds as well, but we don’t want to risk giving up the gains we have made in taking back certain viable and vital worlds of the Empire.”

  “How badly will they hurt us?” Leeson was deeply worried that much of the infrastructure they had built over the last century just to fight this war could be in danger.

  Reynolds took in a deep breath before answering Leeson. “We’re hoping to hold Titan, Ganymede, Pallas, Mars, the Moon, and Earth. We’ll probably lose everything else. That’s why the smaller colonies are being evacuated.”

  “A lot of people are on some of those smaller colonies. What’ll happen to them?”

  “We’ll evacuate as many as we can.”

  “Some won’t leave their homes,” predicted Leeson. “Will we use force to remove them?”

  “That’s not in the current plans,” replied Reynolds. “We’ll evacuate those who want to leave and then see who’s left.”

  “One advantage we may have are the attack interceptors,” said Rear Admiral Collison. “We’ll have nearly 14,000 of them to help in our defense.”

  “I hope so. The Morag will lead this Confederation fleet,” added Reynolds. “Not a lot is known about them, except that they are supposedly very dangerous and may even be the leading power of the seven races.”

  “So what do we do now?” asked Leeson. He didn’t like some of what he had heard. He hated abandoning some of the colonies. People had worked hard to make a living on those asteroids and small moons.

  “We let our ship crews rest as much as possible for the next two weeks, and then we must be ready for all-out war.”

  For the next three hours the admirals talked and discussed strategies. At the end of that time they returned to their flagships. There was not a lot they could do until the Confederation fleet showed up, except consider various plans on how to take down an opponent they knew little about and had never engaged before.

  -

  On Gateway One, Colonel Henderson was in the Command Center, his focus on the large viewscreens. Hundreds of attack interceptors were involved in war games, all aimed at defending the large space station.

  “Impressive so far,” commented Major Patricia Marcus. “Their formations are tight, and they’re making their attack runs as ordered. I just wish all the weaving and changing trajectories wasn’t necessary.”

  Henderson nodded. “I agree, but the interceptors only have a forward shield. It could possibly deflect one shot from a fusion cannon, but the second will overload it and will destroy the interceptor.”

  Henderson’s gaze moved to another screen, which showed one of the six large ODPs that orbited the station. Each ODP was as powerful as three dreadnoughts. “I want to run some damage control drills. If the Confederation attacks, we’d be fools to think they won’t hit the station. I want the living quarters’ section reinforced with armor and made as self-contained as possible.”

  The Command Center was already protected by a heavy layer of battle armor. It would take a direct hit by a fusion or antimatter missile to destroy it. “Let’s go ahead and request another full company of Marines from Earth, in case there’s a boarding action. I don’t want Confederation troops running loose on this station.”

  “I’ll speak to General Brice immediately,” replied Major Marcus. “Are you sure one hundred additional Marines will be enough?”

  “It should be. We already have eighty on the station and forty more on the interceptor platform.”

  “Colonel, Councilor Newcomb is on the comm for you,” reported the communications officer.

  “Very well, transfer it to my office, and I’ll take it in there.” Looking at Major Marcus, he added, “Keep the interceptors working on their patterns and the attack vectors. I’ll be back shortly.”

  Colonel Henderson made his way to his office, attached to the Command Center. Stepping inside, he closed the door for privacy. “Good afternoon, Brett,” he spoke into his comm unit, located on his desk.

  “You won’t believe what I just found out,” said Brett breathlessly. “You know that Rear Admiral Masters asked if we could find any direct descendants of High Prince Aiden Starguard and Lieutenant Maya Breams?”

  “Yes. Did you find any in your search?” Loren had been curious about what the search would find.

  “Two,” replied Brett. “You won’t believe who they are.”

  “Who?” asked Loren. He couldn’t understand why Brett was so excited. “Who are they?”

  “Linda Wilcox and her son, Andrew!”

  “You’re kidding me!” exclaimed Loren in disbelief. “Are you telling me that Andrew is a Royal?”

  “Yep, he would be fourth in line for the rulership of the Empire behind High Princess Layla, Princess Krista, and his mother.”

  Loren leaned back in his chair and started laughing. “Oh, this will be good. Who will tell Andrew?”

&nbs
p; “Derrick,” replied Brett. “This also means that Andrew will soon be living at the Imperial Palace.”

  “What about his mother and father? They’re both still alive.”

  “I’ve already spoken to his mother. When I told her, she only smiled and nodded her head. Then she said she would remain on Earth, as it was her home. Somehow I got the distinct impression she already knew.”

  Loren nodded. “It wouldn’t surprise me. If I remember correctly, she has researched the history of the Imperials who were banished to Earth and made sure to share that with Andrew. It just surprises me that she kept this part of it a secret for so long.”

  “I don’t think she wanted it to influence Andrew’s life. I’ll send a message to Derrick shortly. We must ensure that Andrew is moved to a safe location. It wouldn’t look good if we allowed a Royal to be killed in a battle against the Confederation.”

  “That brings up another issue,” said Loren. “What about Kala? She’s still on Pallas, and they have a very nice home there.”

  Brett was silent for several moments. “I’ll suggest to Derrick that he have Andrew bring Kala to Golan Four immediately. I would like to have her out of the system before the Confederation attacks.”

  “We’ll arrange for a strong escort. Can we spare the ships?”

  “In this instance I don’t think we have any choice. We must keep her safe, and the safest place for her will be with Andrew on Golan Four.”

  “I’ll contact Admiral Reynolds and have him make the arrangements as soon as Andrew has contacted Kala. I sure would like to see the look on her face when she finds out.”

  Brett started laughing. “So would I. I’m also making arrangements to have Andrew’s mother and father moved to a safe place, as soon as we detect the Confederation fleet.”

  “I wish we knew more about the Morag,” said Loren. “These other Confederation races use overwhelming force and firepower to accomplish their victories. That didn’t work with us. The Morag may be entirely different.”

  “All we can do is prepare to the best of our abilities,” relied Brett.

  “You’re right. We’ll know how prepared we are in a few more weeks.”

  -

  General Aleck Weston was on a tour of the perimeter defenses for Earth’s largest shipyard, Alpha One, which served as his Command Center. He had been begging and screaming for more defensive satellites and missile platforms for weeks. They had finally arrived, and he was now supervising their placement. He was really pleased with the four ODPs, sent with promises of two more in the coming week. Major Glen Alexander, the station’s tactical officer, flew the small shuttle.

  “We should put them far enough out so they won’t interfere with our own weapons fire but not too far out where we can’t protect them,” said Alexander. “We’ll also have access to attack interceptors from Earth, when the Confederation fleet arrives.”

  “Rear Admiral Collison’s fleet will be in Earth orbit as well,” replied Weston. “They can provide added support, if needed.”

  As they watched, an Earth cargo ship released four satellites and a missile platform. The missile platforms were large with energy shields and fusion energy cannons. The platforms would also have a small crew of six onboard when they were brought online.

  General Weston let out a deep sigh. “We have a lot of real estate to protect. I bet, in this attack, the Confederation will hit multiple targets at once, making it difficult for us to respond.”

  “We’re still building warships and parts for the defensive grids as fast as we can,” replied Major Alexander. “Factories are running 24/7. If the Confederation comes, we’ll make this system a killing zone.”

  “We may, but I’m afraid we’ll still lose a lot of valuable assets. We’re just spread out over too much of the system.”

  Major Alexander nodded. “I know, but we must make the Confederation pay a heavy price for everything they take from us.”

  General Weston looked out the side cockpit window. Two battlecruisers were visible in the distance. A flight of barely visible attack interceptors were headed out on patrol. The flight pattern around the shipyard was always busy, and Flight Control did a great job keeping the traffic organized and keeping track of where each ship or attack interceptor was supposed to go.

  “It’ll take a few days to get all the satellites and missile platforms in position,” said Major Alexander.

  “I’ll be glad when they’re in place,” replied General Weston. “We’re bound to be a priority target when the Confederation attack takes place.”

  Major Alexander changed the shuttle’s course toward the massive shipyard. It was the largest orbital structure Earth had ever built. It was covered in defensive and offensive weapons. Energy beam turrets were everywhere, as well as circular hatches covering missile tubes.

  The entire shipyard was covered in a thick layer of battle armor. The station had been upgraded to where it now had five construction bays and three repair bays. In addition, several large landing bays were set aside for the 120 attack interceptors kept onboard. The shipyard was not just responsible for protecting itself but for protecting Earth as well.

  -

  Colonel Macy Abrams was in charge of the orbital defenses of Mars. She was also stationed on the largest of their two shipyards.

  “At least we have a fleet to help defend us,” said Major Brit Tompkins, her tactical officer. “Rear Admiral Mendoza will be covering us with his Sixth Fleet.”

  “I wish it were bigger,” said Macy. “From the latest reports Mendoza is getting 412 battlecruisers and 32 dreadnoughts. At least we have over 2,000 attack interceptors based on Mars.”

  Macy’s gaze shifted to the main viewscreen in the busy Command Center, focused on the now blue-white world of Mars. Over 212 million Humans lived on the planet. “It’s strange to see all the water,” she said. “I can’t believe how much the planet’s changed.”

  “Nearly 32 percent of the surface is now covered in water,” replied Tompkins.

  Macy could barely see the peak of Olympus Mons, the highest mountain on the planet at just over 72,000 feet. It was covered in snow. Climbers were banned from the upper slopes of the mountain because the air was so thin. It was also unbelievably cold. Olympus Mons was nearly two and a half times higher than Mount Everest on Earth. A weather station was on the summit that was manned all year long. It was a job she wouldn’t care for.

  Some discussion had been had about putting a Planetary Defense Center, a PDC, atop the mountain, but engineers had deemed it unsafe and impractical. “I have a meeting tomorrow with Governor Fuller. We’ll discuss the coming attack and what else can be done to prepare for it.”

  “What will you tell her? It’s not easy to hide from a fusion or antimatter strike.”

  “I’ll recommend sending as many people away from the big cities as possible. Those will be the primary targets. The planet already has some deep bunkers in case of an attack. We know the earliest time the Confederation fleets can be here. I’ll recommend that all those bunkers be packed full by that date, and everyone else can be moved to the smaller cities. I want the city of Marsonna completely evacuated, as it will be the primary target on the planet.”

  “Marsonna has a defensive ring of fusion energy cannons around it,” protested Tompkins. “There are missile batteries as well and four PDCs nearby. Are you saying those won’t be enough?”

  “They won’t be enough. If the Confederation is highly determined—and I suspect they are—they’ll get a missile through to Marsonna.”

  Tompkins was quiet as he thought over Colonel Macy Abrams’s words. He had been to Marsonna a number of times. It was the most advanced city in the Solar System, next to Luna City. He would hate to see it destroyed.

  -

  Colonel Green, commander of Ganymede, was again arguing with the chief scientist on Europa via hyperlight transmission. For several days now Green had been trying to get the scientist to evacuate his people off the moon Europa and to Gany
mede, with its burgeoning defense systems.

  “They won’t attack us,” said Alvin Grayson stubbornly. “We’re not a military target.”

  “It won’t matter,” replied Green, frustrated. Why couldn’t he make this scientist understand the danger? “They will attack Europa just because Humans live here.”

  “We have a defensive grid, and our ODP sits right above our main colony.”

  “Not nearly enough defensive measures,” replied Green. “The Confederation will blow right through your defenses.”

  “Then send us more,” demanded Grayson. “It’s your duty to protect us.”

  “There’s no more available. Every colony in the system is screaming for an increase in their defense grids. We’ve given Europa everything we can.”

  “Well, we’re not leaving,” said Grayson stubbornly, and the comm went dead.

  “He’s disconnected,” reported the communications officer.

  “The fool,” said Major Gina Nelson, second in command. “He’s dooming everyone on that moon.”

  “He doesn’t care,” said the comm officer. “All he’s concerned about is his research. You’re talking war, and he’s talking science.”

  “Send a message to Admiral Reynolds that the scientists on Europa refuse to evacuate.” Colonel Green leaned back in his command chair, letting out a deep sigh.

  Many of the smaller mining operations were doing the same. They were afraid, if they moved out, even for a short while, someone else might move in. Some had evacuated, but many still refused to.

  On the main viewscreen, a battlecruiser was visible. Unfortunately, once the Confederation fleet was detected, all the warships in the Jovian system would head for Earth, leaving Colonel Green on his own. A pair of interceptors suddenly appeared and moved across the screen. At least he had a large number of those. However, he would give anything for a fleet of battlecruisers.

  -

  Colonel Edwards was in the Command Center of the only space station in orbit of Titan, the only moon of Saturn that was heavily colonized. Small mining settlements were on some of the other moons, and most of them were being evacuated.